Australian Musical Theatre Festival
Rose Cooper shared a coffee with Tyran Parke in Launceston as he was putting the final touches to five days of gourmet musical theatre.
If you're involved in theatre, chances are you either know Tyran Parke personally, or you know someone who does. There aren't many areas of the performing arts that Tyran hasn't had a hand in, and not many parts of Australia where he hasn't either performed, taught, produced or directed.
He grew up in Newcastle, going on to study at WAAPA, then doing further study in Sydney, as well as performing in and directing major productions in Sydney and overseas. I'd venture to suggest he's Aussie theatre's answer to Kevin Bacon.
Currently residing in Melbourne, his day job is Head of Music Theatre at the prestigious Victorian College of the Arts. Recently, he launched his own production company – Clovelly Fox - which in itself implies that he's a very busy man.
Amazing therefore that for the past six years he's also been swanning across the Bass Strait to Launceston every Autumn, to be either the executive producer, or artistic director - or both - for the annual Australian Musical Theatre Festival.
Naturally, he also performs, directs, conducts live celebrity interviews and teaches theatre craft at a diverse range of performance workshops alongside some of Australia's most talented thespians, during the five-day festival. Yet, with all this on his plate, somehow the stars aligned for us to catch up.
Within minutes I was struck by his effective and deeply sincere way of communicating his passion for all things theatre. He has the knack of meeting people on their level and creating a sense of genuine connection. I can't recall ever meeting someone who was every bit as invested in listening as he was in talking. It's a cliché to describe such an accomplished artist as 'down to earth' (and in Tyran's case, that's obviously true also) but it's more than that. His ability to connect with people is clearly his superpower.
“At the first festival in 2019, Chloe Dallimore made this amazing thank you speech, saying how deeply moved she was by the experience; declaring that it was more than a festival of Musical Theatre, it was also a festival of humanity,” he says, glowing with pride. “That, to me was the highest compliment.”
He adds, “As far as I'm concerned, the festival is a celebration of human connection first and foremost. That means everybody - from the seasoned performers to emerging artists, to audiences and theatre geeks, to the students and the locals. It's a chance for everyone to share their stories and discover their potential. Live theatre creates communities within communities.”
Devising the complex program each year poses all kinds of challenges, but Tyran sees them as opportunities to continually explore, expand and reinvent the medium.
He explains: “Musical Theatre has often been misrepresented as lightweight, compared to other forms of theatre, but the genre has continually evolved to be just as emotionally raw, real and life-affirming as straight drama.
“In fact, there's a worldwide shift from the term 'Musical Theatre' to 'Music Theatre'. Back when I got my degree, it was for 'Musical Theatre', however that same institution now offers 'Music Theatre' instead. We're continually identifying things that defy the usual descriptors.
“What is a musical? If it's done by an opera company, is it now an opera? If it uses the form in a different way, like Once or Hamilton, how do we identify it as a musical? Calling it Music Theatre allows us to embrace numerous possibilities within the form – and I'm all for it.”
That ongoing exploration is reflected in this year's diverse programme, and several events are free!
“Launceston has the perfect layout for this event,” Tyran enthuses. “As well as utilising traditional spaces, we'll have all sorts of free events popping up in various unusual locations during the day. We even have an event at the Harvest Markets. Did you know that Launceston is ranked 4th in UNESCO's Worldwide Top Ten Regions of Gastronomy?”
I did not. I make a mental note to google 'gastronomy'.
His enthusiasm is infectious. “I love the freedom I feel to experiment with concepts, genres and formats. While budget constraints encourage me to think outside of the box, which is not altogether a bad thing.
“For example, last year we challenged the budget when staging Nine, The Musical. We couldn't afford the usual number of musicians, which inspired the idea to introduce one instrument at a time. By the time the mini 'orchestra' played in unison, it was at a pivotal point in the play, which made the production feel extra special.”
It's very clear, when sharing these stories of festivals past, just how genuinely fond he is of Launceston. He even regaled me with the odd history lesson...
“Richard White was a former convict from England who served out his time on Norfolk Island and then came to settle in Launceston. Apparently free men could just stake a claim in those days, so he grabbed a chunk of land in the middle of town and built the Launceston Hotel. In today's parlance “Dicky” would be politely described as a Colourful Racing Identity. While the famous old hotel has since been divided and repurposed, there's a charming Laneway nearby called Dicky White's Lane to carry on his legacy. It's the perfect backdrop for our free, pop-up street performances, known as Busker's Alley. Very happy to say this has become a festival tradition.”
As he speaks, I find myself feeling a very strong pang of retro-FOMO, for all the cool stuff I've missed so far. It does fade somewhat when I think about all the incredible productions on offer this year. I'm honestly giddy about seeing the one-off production of Some Enchanted Evening at the gorgeous Princess Theatre. Not only will the line-up of singers be a gathering together of the festival's biggest names, singing the greatest hits from Broadway and the West End, but they'll be sharing the stage with the award-winning Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra.
I'm not sure I'm ready for it, to be honest. I'll need keep the tissues handy.
Then there's Working: A Musical, playing at the Earl Arts Theatre for two nights With songs from famous composers like Lin-Manuel Miranda, Stephen Schwartz and James Taylor, interwoven with a wide variety of monologues, based on the best-selling book by Studs Terkel (you read the name right) which contains interviews with 'the workers the world often takes for granted'. Tyran lights up describing his vision for this production.
“This is a fantastic show, but I felt parts of it weren't entirely relevant to modern, local audiences, so I took a bit of a gamble and contacted Stephen Schwartz personally to ask if I could throw some local flavour into the mix. He agreed! Then I did a call out to local Launcestonites to send me their stories, which I am incorporating into fresh new monologues.”
Because of course he will. By this point, I'm not 100% sure Tyran sleeps.
Suddenly a friend of his arrives and taps Tyran on the shoulder. They arranged to meet for lunch. Where did that 90 minutes go?
He introduces me as to his old friend as 'his new friend, Rose,' then asks: “I hope that's not too presumptuous.”
As if. Our chat left me feeling inspired and so replenished. It's a superpower, I tell you.
May 21 cannot get here quick enough.
Information and tickets: www.amtf.org.au
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